Queen
Queen is a British rock band from London, England that formed in 1971, consisting of Freddie Mercury, Brian May, John Deacon, and Roger Taylor. Queen is claimed to be one of the greatest stadium rock bands in the world, and are also noted for having several major hit songs that are still well known today. Several of these songs are We Will Rock You, Bohemian Rhapsody, Killer Queen, We Are the Champions, and Another One Bites the Dust. Queen disbanded in 1991, with the death of lead singer, Freddie Mercury, from causes related to AIDS. John Deacon retired just a few years later in 1997, although drummer and guitarist Roger Taylor and Brian May (respectively) both still perform as solo artists and together under the band’s name. In Road to Palmyra, the members of Queen have stowed away on the Doom Blimp along with the Palmyrians. Among all the chaos, they hide away in a closet in the control room, only coming out once so far in the comic series, during the Palmyrians' adventure in North Korea. At this point, the teens were fleeing from the hostile Canadians28, and the members of Queen came to help them. At this point, the band returned to the blimp, and are still lying in wait, unbeknownst to the others on the blimp. Members Freddie Mercury Farrokh Bulsara (1946-1991), or Freddie Mercury, as he was universally known, was a musician, known for his career as lead singer and pianist for the British rock n’ roll band Queen. Mercury, originally from Zanzibar, he began piano lessons at the age of seven. After graduating school, he performed with a number of bands, although none lasted very long. In 1970, he joined guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor, who were from a band called Smile. Soon afterwards, Freddie adopted the surname Mercury. Freddie wrote many of Queen’s greatest hits, including Bohemian Rhapsody, We Are the Champions, Killer Queen, Somebody to Love, Don’t Stop Me Now and Crazy Little Thing Called Love. Mercury was known mainly for his flamboyant personality on-stage and his powerful singing voice, which spread over a range of four octaves. Freddie remained dedicated to his work, still performing and recording even despite being very sick with AIDS. However, in late 1991, he succumbed to the disease, just a day after revealing to the press that he was ill. In Road to Palmyra, Freddie is just as flamboyant and charismatic as he appeared to be on stage during his life. He is clearly his friends’ natural leader, taking charge, helping to break up fights, and offer comfort and reassurance when needed. He has a tendency to call people affectionate names like ‘darling or ‘dear’, especially his bandmates. He made his first appearance alongside his bandmates in episode 36, when it was revealed that they had stowed away on the Doom Blimp when their boat was stolen from them. Their goal is to reach Hawaii. Freddie was also the one to suggest that the group spring into action to help the Palmyrians escape Canadians28. After this, the four try to sneak away and go back into the closet, but just before they can hide away, the blimp goes under attack, and begins to crash. A computer shatters open a window, which Roger falls from. After the blimp is returned to its normal state, the remaining three members of Queen, who presume Roger to be dead, hide away again, only to find the closet is now inhabited by not only the members of Led Zeppelin, but also by Marcelo’s (self-proclaimed) “best friend”. Brian May Brian Harold May (1947- ) or Brian May, is a British musician and songwriter, known best for his career as lead guitarist for the band Queen. Brian met Roger Taylor in 1968, through his first band, Smile. The two met Freddie Mercury just two years later and formed Queen with him and John Deacon. In Queen, Brian was known for his custom-made guitar, Red Special, and the hit songs he wrote such as We Will Rock You, Tie Your Mother Down, Fat Bottomed Girls, Who Wants to Live Forever, and I Want it All. He also occasionally sang, both live and on albums. Even after Freddie Mercury’s death and John Deacon’s retirement, May and Taylor continued occasionally performing under the name Queen. In Road to Palmyra, May does not speak as much as Freddie or Roger. It is revealed early on in their appearance in the North Korea Arc of RtP that it was Brian’s idea to stow away on the Doom Blimp when the band’s boat was stolen. For that reason, when things start to go wrong, Roger Taylor is very angry at Brian and begins to yell at him. Afterwards, the band decides to save the Palmyrians, and Brian fights Canadians28, destroying him with sound waves from his Red Special guitar. When this happens, it is clear that Roger and Brian still aren’t getting along, as Roger still appears very angry with Brian. Shortly after Queen sneaks back onto the blimp, it enters lockdown mode, causing it to tilt and come near crashing- during this incident, Roger falls through a shattered window, sacrificing himself so his band members could get to safety inside the closet, protecting themselves from the impact of the crash. It seems to the remaining band members that Roger has died, and although Brian does not act like it, he seems to feel guilty about never getting to apologize to Roger for their fight. John Deacon John Richard Deacon (1951- ) or John Deacon, is a retired British musician and songwriter, best known as the bassist for the band Queen. He wrote several well-known Queen songs such as Another One Bites the Dust, You’re My Best Friend, I Want to Break Free, and Spread Your Wings. He also played multiple other instruments on various Queen tracks. He auditioned for Queen in 1971, and made it, becoming the youngest member of Queen at age nineteen at the time. John was known for his quiet demeanor, both on-stage and in real life. His last performance as a musician was with the two remaining members of Queen on their song No-One but You (Only the Good Die Young) in the year 1997, shortly after which, he retired from the music industry. In Road to Palmyra, John Deacon is portrayed as being just as quiet as he is in real life. John mainly speaks only when spoken to, and doesn’t say much. For the most part, he has a stoic facial expression, although he will show heavy emotion in intense situations. Because of his quiet personality, it is hard to tell whose side he is taking on the argument about stowing away on the blimp. His first appearance is alongside the other members of Queen as they exit the closet, and go to assist the Palmyrians. He only speaks once or twice in these moments, however, and only in response to other people. He later plays a bigger part in Queen’s subplot, when the blimp is under attack and falling. Queen is just about to make it back into the closet to safety when this happens, so they have no choice but to desperately hold on for dear life as the blimp begins to fall from the sky. A computer shatters a window, however, and Roger slips, grabbing John’s hand for dear life, putting them into a Catch 22- John must use both of his hands in order to open the closet so his friends can get inside and be safe from most of the impact of the crash… but doing so would mean he would have to let Roger go. Roger decides to make a sacrifice to save his bandmates, and lets go of John’s hand, plummeting out the blimp’s window. At this point, the blimp is put back into control again, and the band presumes their friend to be dead. John begins to feel a terrible amount of guilt, thinking that it is his fault Roger has died. Roger Taylor Roger Meddows Taylor (1949- ) or Roger Taylor, is a British musician and songwriter, known as the drummer and occasional vocalist for the band Queen. He contributed many songs to the band, even singing lead vocals on some. A few of his more well-known songs include Radio Ga Ga, A Kind of Magic, The Invisible Man, I’m in Love With my Car and These Are the Days of Our Lives. Roger Taylor played alongside Brian May in the band Smile from 1968 to 1970 before joining Freddie Mercury in Queen. He was known both for his innovative drum playing and his recognizable vocals, which have a large range, like Freddie Mercury’s. After Mercury’s death, Taylor produced solo albums and continued to occasionally perform with Brian May under Queen’s name, even after John Deacon retired in 1997. In Road to Palmyra, Roger seems very unsure about the band stowing away in the Doom Blimp. When things start to go wrong, he gets angry and immediately blames Brian for what is happening, since it was his idea to stow away on the Doom Blimp. Even after he is calmed down by Freddie, Roger still seems to be mad at Brian for a while. Then, when the group sneaks back onto the blimp, it goes under attack and enters lockdown mode. At this point, the blimp begins to tilt to one side, causing Roger to slip and a computer to fall and shatter a window. Just before Roger falls, John manages to grab his hand- however, this puts the band into a catch-22 situation. John needs to open the closet to bring his bandmates to safety, but doing this would mean he would have to let go of Roger, letting him fall to his death. Roger tells John to let him go, and when he refuses, he lets go of John’s hand, sacrificing himself so his friends can get to safety. After Roger falls through the shattered window, he is visibly injured from both the impact and pieces of broken glass from the window. For a while, Roger plummets toward the ground, but is quickly saved by the superhero Toastman. Even though he has been saved, Toastman cannot immediately send him back to the blimp, because Roger is injured and it is dangerous to approach the blimp while it is in danger of attack. Roger asks what will happen if he cannot find his friends again, but Toast Man does not respond. It is clear that Roger will be separated from his friends (who have presumed he has died from his fall) for a long time.